Infield: First baseman Frank “The Big Hurt” Thomas (1990-2008) was a devastating hitter, a Ted Williams type who hit for a high average with tons of walks and power. He was a massive guy (listed at 6-5, 240) who couldn’t field and was dreadfully slow, but he might have been the most devastating hitter of the 1990s. He was undrafted out of high school – go figure – so he accepted a football scholarship to play tight end at Auburn. He walked on to the school’s baseball team and quickly emerged as a star. The White Sox drafted him in the first round in 1989, and by the end of the 1990 season he was beating the holy hell out of major-league pitching. Year in and year out, he would bat well over .300 with 120 walks and 35-40 home runs, scoring and driving in 100 runs. He won two MVP awards and finished his career at .301/419/.555 with 521 home runs, 1,704 RBI and 1,494 runs. One assumes he will be a first-ballot Hall of Fame selection, but then, one never knows how to predict the voters’ prejudices against designated hitters and sluggers from the steroid era (although Thomas was one of the most outspoken players in advocating drug testing in baseball). Third baseman Fernando Tatis (1997-2010) had one outstanding season – 1999 for the Cardinals, when he batted .298 with 82 walks, hit 34 home runs, driving in 107 runs and scoring 104. The centerpiece to that season came on April 23, when he set a record we feel strongly will never be broken, hitting two grand slams in the same inning (both off Chan Ho Park). Injuries set in after that season, and he appeared to be done in 2003 at age 28. He went home to the Dominican Republic but made an improbable return to the majors three years later when he needed funds to build a church in his hometown. He spent a few years as a fairly productive role player, and yes, he got that chuch built in San Pedro de Macoris. Second baseman Fresco Thompson (1925-34) was an Ivy Leaguer who had a fairly modest major-league career – he was a contact hitter who batted .298, and in the hitter-friendly Baker Bowl he put together a couple of superficially impressive seasons. He is best known for his long association with the Dodgers as a minor-league manager, farm director and front office executive. (He finally became the team’s general manager in 1968 but was subsequently diagnosed with cancer and died a few months later.) Shortstop Fred Thomas (1918-20) was a light hitter who won a World Series title with the 1918 Red Sox.
Outfield: Left fielder Frank “The Donkey” Thomas (1951-66) was a slugger who was versatile enough to be a defensive liability at several different positions. His nickname may have been a reference to his large size, his lack of physical grace and/or his lack of personal grace (he was known to get into fights with teammates, and he changed teams often). That said, he was a good hitter, knocking out 286 home runs and driving in almost 1,000 runs. He spent most of his career with bad teams, including the 1952 Pirates (42-112) and the legendary 1962 Mets (40-120). Right fielder Fred Tenney (1894-1911) was primarily a first baseman, but he’s not going to beat out The Big Hurt, and he occasionally played catcher, which is a good thing, because this team needs a backup at that position. But his main position on this roster will be outfield. Tenney was a good, consistent lefty hitter who compiled 2,231 hits and 1,278 runs in his career, mostly with the Boston Beaneaters. He will bat leadoff on this team and will score quite a few runs with the two Frank Thomases and Fernando Tatis coming up behind him. Another Ivy Leaguer (from Brown), he was a gentleman in baseball’s era of roughnecks. Center fielder Fred Treacey (1871-76) was a diminutive fellow whose career actually predates professional baseball, and he may well have fought in the Civil War. From the looks of his basic stats, he was nothing special as a player.
Catcher: Fred Tyler (1914) was the younger brother of Lefty Tyler, a pitcher who won 129 games in the bigs. Fred was nowhere near as successful, going 2-for-19 in his brief major-league career.
Rotation: Lefty Frank Tanana (1973-93) was a workhorse, one of a small handful of pitchers in history to make more than 600 starts. He came to the majors as a teenage fireballer, and after some injuries he reinvented himself as a junkballer. Toward the end of his career he liked to joke that he threw in the 90s in the ‘70s, and in the 70s in the ‘90s. As a young stud, he teamed with Nolan Ryan to head some formidable Angels rotations; Tanana led the AL in strikeouts in 1975 and in ERA in 1977. He never won 20 games, but he finished with 240 victories and 2,773 strikeouts. Fred Toney (1911-23) won 139 games, but one victory stands out over the rest. On May 2, 1917, pitching for the Reds, Toney threw a no-hitter – but Cubs pitcher Hippo Vaughn also held Cincinnati hitless through nine innings, so the game went to extra innings as a scoreless tie. In the 10th, the Reds broke up the no-hitter and the shutout, and Toney completed his no-hitter for the victory. Fred Talbot (1963-70) had a career record of 38-56, but he was immortalized in Jim Bouton’s notorious memoir “Ball Four.” Talbot, a crew-cut conservative, had been teammates with the liberal Bouton with the Yankees, and they were reunited in 1969 with the Seattle Pilots. They seemed to enjoy antagonizing each other, and not in a friendly way. Bouton once arranged to send Talbot a telegram informing him that he was being named in a paternity suit, just to watch Talbot squirm uncomfortably in the clubhouse; Talbot responded by nailing Bouton’s shoes to the floor using enormous railroad spikes. Freddie Toliver (1984-93) had a long career in the minors but never got a strong foothold in the majors. He split his time between the bullpen and the rotation, winning 10 games in his career. Fred Tenney (1884), not to be confused with the other Fred Tenney (or for that matter with Fred Toney), was a weak-hitting outfielder, but he did make five starts during his brief big-league career and he actually pitched pretty well. (The two Fred Tenneys were apparently not related, though both attended Brown University, giving this team three Ivy Leaguers).
Bullpen: Lefty Forrest Thompson (1948-49) is the de facto closer in a very thin bullpen. He didn’t make it to the majors until he was 30 years old, but he pitched reasonably well for the Senators, and he did save four games. The job is his to lose. Fay Thomas (1927-35) was a journeyman who spent four seasons in the majors with four different teams. He actually won 214 games in the minors, and as such he might well take a job in the rotation away from Toliver or Tenney, but for now he’ll be a workhorse out of the bullpen. (He also appeared in the movie “Pride of the Yankees,” playing the role of Christy Mathewson.) Fuller “The Brush Salesman” Thompson (1911) appeared in three games for the Boston Braves. Frosty “The Snowman” Thomas (1905) appeared in two games for the Tigers. Frank Todd (1898) pitched briefly and ineffectively for Louisville. Fred Trautman (1915) pitched one game in the Federal League. If you’re counting, the last four pitchers in this bullpen logged a total of 10 games in the majors. Told you the bullpen was thin.
Bench: First baseman Frank Torre (1956-63), brother of Joe, was a decent singles hitter for the Milwaukee Braves. His job on this team will be as a defensive replacement for The Big Hurt. Frank Tepedino (1967-75) was a light-hitting first baseman for the post-dynasty Yankees. After his retirement, he became a New York City firefighter and was one of the first responders at Ground Zero. Infielder Felix Torres (1962-64) spent three years as the Angels’ starting third baseman, hitting 11 home runs in 1962 and 12 in 1964. He was very quiet and never spoke English; an Angels trainer once spent three days working on Torres’ left arm before Torres finally mentioned to him that it was the right arm that was hurt. Outfielder Faye Throneberry (1952-61) was nowhere near as colorful as his brother, Marvelous Marv. Infielder Frank Truesdale (1910-18) was a fine defensive second baseman but not much of a hitter. Outfielder Frank Thompson (1875) went 2-for-5 in his only game for the Brooklyn Atlantics, giving him a career average of .400.
Manager: Frederick L. Thomas, a different guy than the shortstop listed above, never played in the majors, but he went 11-18 as manager of the Indianapolis Hoosiers in 1887. We’re guessing h e’ll get some help from Fresco Thompson in running this team.
Outfield: Left fielder Frank “The Donkey” Thomas (1951-66) was a slugger who was versatile enough to be a defensive liability at several different positions. His nickname may have been a reference to his large size, his lack of physical grace and/or his lack of personal grace (he was known to get into fights with teammates, and he changed teams often). That said, he was a good hitter, knocking out 286 home runs and driving in almost 1,000 runs. He spent most of his career with bad teams, including the 1952 Pirates (42-112) and the legendary 1962 Mets (40-120). Right fielder Fred Tenney (1894-1911) was primarily a first baseman, but he’s not going to beat out The Big Hurt, and he occasionally played catcher, which is a good thing, because this team needs a backup at that position. But his main position on this roster will be outfield. Tenney was a good, consistent lefty hitter who compiled 2,231 hits and 1,278 runs in his career, mostly with the Boston Beaneaters. He will bat leadoff on this team and will score quite a few runs with the two Frank Thomases and Fernando Tatis coming up behind him. Another Ivy Leaguer (from Brown), he was a gentleman in baseball’s era of roughnecks. Center fielder Fred Treacey (1871-76) was a diminutive fellow whose career actually predates professional baseball, and he may well have fought in the Civil War. From the looks of his basic stats, he was nothing special as a player.
Catcher: Fred Tyler (1914) was the younger brother of Lefty Tyler, a pitcher who won 129 games in the bigs. Fred was nowhere near as successful, going 2-for-19 in his brief major-league career.
Rotation: Lefty Frank Tanana (1973-93) was a workhorse, one of a small handful of pitchers in history to make more than 600 starts. He came to the majors as a teenage fireballer, and after some injuries he reinvented himself as a junkballer. Toward the end of his career he liked to joke that he threw in the 90s in the ‘70s, and in the 70s in the ‘90s. As a young stud, he teamed with Nolan Ryan to head some formidable Angels rotations; Tanana led the AL in strikeouts in 1975 and in ERA in 1977. He never won 20 games, but he finished with 240 victories and 2,773 strikeouts. Fred Toney (1911-23) won 139 games, but one victory stands out over the rest. On May 2, 1917, pitching for the Reds, Toney threw a no-hitter – but Cubs pitcher Hippo Vaughn also held Cincinnati hitless through nine innings, so the game went to extra innings as a scoreless tie. In the 10th, the Reds broke up the no-hitter and the shutout, and Toney completed his no-hitter for the victory. Fred Talbot (1963-70) had a career record of 38-56, but he was immortalized in Jim Bouton’s notorious memoir “Ball Four.” Talbot, a crew-cut conservative, had been teammates with the liberal Bouton with the Yankees, and they were reunited in 1969 with the Seattle Pilots. They seemed to enjoy antagonizing each other, and not in a friendly way. Bouton once arranged to send Talbot a telegram informing him that he was being named in a paternity suit, just to watch Talbot squirm uncomfortably in the clubhouse; Talbot responded by nailing Bouton’s shoes to the floor using enormous railroad spikes. Freddie Toliver (1984-93) had a long career in the minors but never got a strong foothold in the majors. He split his time between the bullpen and the rotation, winning 10 games in his career. Fred Tenney (1884), not to be confused with the other Fred Tenney (or for that matter with Fred Toney), was a weak-hitting outfielder, but he did make five starts during his brief big-league career and he actually pitched pretty well. (The two Fred Tenneys were apparently not related, though both attended Brown University, giving this team three Ivy Leaguers).
Bullpen: Lefty Forrest Thompson (1948-49) is the de facto closer in a very thin bullpen. He didn’t make it to the majors until he was 30 years old, but he pitched reasonably well for the Senators, and he did save four games. The job is his to lose. Fay Thomas (1927-35) was a journeyman who spent four seasons in the majors with four different teams. He actually won 214 games in the minors, and as such he might well take a job in the rotation away from Toliver or Tenney, but for now he’ll be a workhorse out of the bullpen. (He also appeared in the movie “Pride of the Yankees,” playing the role of Christy Mathewson.) Fuller “The Brush Salesman” Thompson (1911) appeared in three games for the Boston Braves. Frosty “The Snowman” Thomas (1905) appeared in two games for the Tigers. Frank Todd (1898) pitched briefly and ineffectively for Louisville. Fred Trautman (1915) pitched one game in the Federal League. If you’re counting, the last four pitchers in this bullpen logged a total of 10 games in the majors. Told you the bullpen was thin.
Bench: First baseman Frank Torre (1956-63), brother of Joe, was a decent singles hitter for the Milwaukee Braves. His job on this team will be as a defensive replacement for The Big Hurt. Frank Tepedino (1967-75) was a light-hitting first baseman for the post-dynasty Yankees. After his retirement, he became a New York City firefighter and was one of the first responders at Ground Zero. Infielder Felix Torres (1962-64) spent three years as the Angels’ starting third baseman, hitting 11 home runs in 1962 and 12 in 1964. He was very quiet and never spoke English; an Angels trainer once spent three days working on Torres’ left arm before Torres finally mentioned to him that it was the right arm that was hurt. Outfielder Faye Throneberry (1952-61) was nowhere near as colorful as his brother, Marvelous Marv. Infielder Frank Truesdale (1910-18) was a fine defensive second baseman but not much of a hitter. Outfielder Frank Thompson (1875) went 2-for-5 in his only game for the Brooklyn Atlantics, giving him a career average of .400.
Manager: Frederick L. Thomas, a different guy than the shortstop listed above, never played in the majors, but he went 11-18 as manager of the Indianapolis Hoosiers in 1887. We’re guessing h e’ll get some help from Fresco Thompson in running this team.
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